Men's Hoops: Control the paint, control the game

Size mattered Tuesday night at the Cam Henderson Center.

The Marshall men's basketball team defeated West Virginia Wesleyan 108-64 in the Herd's only exhibition game of the year.

Marshall held a distinct size advantage over Wesleyan, as the Bobcats' tallest player stood only 6-foot-7. The next tallest player stood only 6-5. The Herd had seven players stand 6-6 and over.

The size difference showed, and Tyler Wilkerson knew the Herd could dominate a game with the team it has.

"We have a lot of players that can run up and down the floor and run hard," Wilkerson said. "Everybody is real athletic. No matter who we bring in the game, we're going to have good shot-blockers in the game, good defenders in the game, good shooters. We got a good team and I'm happy with it right now."

The 6-8 Wilkerson had a double-double with 18 points and 17 rebounds. The Herd scored more points, 74, in the paint than Wesleyan scored the entire game.

Tirrell Baines, who led the Herd in scoring with 21 points of 10-15 shooting, said that it was a chance to get ready for the season and work the ball inside.

"I'm satisfied with the way we played today," Baines said. "We've got depth now, and we can overwhelm everybody."

Highly touted freshman center, 7-foot Hassan Whiteside, took care of the inside paint with a large wingspan. He finished the game with 14 points, five rebounds and four blocks, including a two-handed stuff in the second half that led to a Herd three-pointer.

Transfer forward Antonio Haymon got in on the action, scoring 17 points and seven rebounds in his first action in a Marshall jersey.

Head coach Donnie Jones said while it was difficult for the big men to stay with Wesleyan's small lineup, he was happy with the way the team kept the tempo up.

"Sometimes when you play teams like West Virginia Wesleyan, they sometimes milk the clock," Jones said. "It's easy to play at their level. But we were trying to speed up the tempo and try to force them to do things more quicker."

The Herd not only worked its height advantage, but Jones' up-tempo style of play was in full effect. Marshall pressed, pushed and ran the court in trying to keep the tempo to their style of play.

The Herd caused 19 turnovers with its pressure defense and added 34 points off turnovers.  Even with a 40-point lead, the Herd continued to press Wesleyan through the end of the game.

Jones said it was not about running up the score, but getting ready for the regular season.

"We were using this game to get better," he said. "I kept telling our guys don't look at the score, I don't care about the score, I care about what we are doing to get better as a team. Take advantage of this opportunity."

Wilkerson said that the point of the game was to shake off the rust for the regular season.

   "We take it as a wake up game," he said. "It's a game where we get out there and get the kinks out. Try to get our plays more crisp."

  With this exhibition in the book, the Herd now looks to Sunday and the season opener against North Carolina A&T.

   The Aggies represent the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference. Jones said that while this seems like a rout on paper, that his team should not underestimate the Aggies.

   "They're very long and really athletic just like us," Jones said. "This team is very talented and play seven and eight guys and play hard and well coached. It will be tough battle on Sunday. People get caught up in the name; don't get caught up in the name with this team. They have a good chance to finish in the top of their league."

   The game, part of the Global Sports Invitational, is at the Cam Henderson Center and tips off at 2 p.m.

GAME NOTES:
Pitts, Pena hurt — Guard Damier Pitts and Dago Pena missed Tuesday's game with concussions. Pena is expected to be back soon and Pitts will be away for at least a week and is not probable for Sunday's opener.

Point Guard Shuffle — With Pitts out, Marshall ran a few different guys at the point. Senior guards Chris Lutz and Darryl Merthie ran the offense for a majority of the game, while sophomore Shaquille Johnson also helped out.

   The sharpshooting Lutz scored only six points, but led the team with eight assists while Johnson scored eight points and added four assists.

   Put the pleasant surprise for Jones was Merthie, who started for the injured Pitts. Merthie scored eight points and added five assists and was aggressive in controlling the tempo.

   Merthie drove to the basket, made crisp passes and was usually leading the pack when the Herd ran the floor.

  Jones said that Merthie has grown as a leader.

   "Darryl has made great strides," Jones said about the fifth year senior. "He's playing with confidence, he's worked hard, he's learning not to take plays off and he's having fun. It's great to see him playing with a smile."

Kyle Hobstetter can be contacted at Hobstetter@marshall.edu